AMD tries to make PC purchases simpler

The No. 2 chip maker is embarking on a new marketing campaign in which it is actually de-emphasizing its chips in favor of appealing to the use case scenarios of consumers. With the new Vision Technology from AMD branding, AMD will spend less time talking about CPU clock speeds and more about what people can actually do with its processors and graphic cards.

This addresses the confusion that many consumers feel as they enter a Best Buy and they’re bombarded with specifications that don’t get at what they’re really trying to do. AMD believes better branding and working with retail partners to train their associates will help consumers get over the intimidation and confusion factor and help them slide more easily into a PC purchase.

What this will look like for consumers is three different categories called Vision Basic, Vision Premium and Vision Ultimate, which will replace the more than 20 categories AMD applies now to its computers.

The categories will line up along the lines of seeing, sharing and creating. So if you’re basic web user who likes to e-mail, watch some YouTube and check up on Facebook, you’ll probably want to buy a Vision Basic computer. For more involved media consumption including HD video and light gaming, you want to go the Vision Premium route. And if you’re looking to make and edit content and do more serious gaming, the Vision Ultimate is for you. A fourth category called Vision Black will appear in Q1 2010 for high-end performance users.

AMD said it will still provide all the hardware specs it normally does for those looking to do in-depth comparisons. But they’re hoping that this new strategy will speak to the masses and also highlight AMD’s strengths in graphics and visual computing.

“People want technology but the technology is now a supportive feature, it’s not the lead story anymore,” said Leslie Sobon, vice president of marketing for AMD. “People don’t care what processor is in it. They want to know what they can do with it.”

Like I said it’s a curious strategy for a chip maker, saying that the chips themselves are not the lead story. But this should be very good for consumers, who can use a little more encouragement and better information as they make their PC buys. And since it’s timed with the Oct. 22 launch of Windows 7, it should provide another boost for the PC industry.